Almost killed a character Saturday night, "Well, you're the one that wanted to play with grenades." Options

[ravensmuse]

I ran my players through parts of Chicago on Saturday and yeah, almost killed one of 'em.

Brief interlude: Feral Cities - specifically Chicago, though I will not speak ill of the rest of the book - is amazing. It is chock full of little tidbits that really add nothing more than pure flavor to the setting, enabling me to come up with all sorts of plots, locations, NPCs, the like. It is exactly what a location book should be - detailed, character oriented, with lots of plothooks that are spelled out but with lots of inconsistencies you can use to tailor interesting rumors to your needs. Just an all around awesome book.

Denver needs a good update like this. I know it'll be focused on some with the upcoming Spy Games line and all of that but frankly - and if you know me - that's not really on my radar. I'm thinking I'm going to have to do it, and it makes me sad. *sigh* I have the quick writeup Bishop and the Missions crew wrote up a few years back, and all of the Denver missions themselves, but...Denver could really use a nice slick writeup like Chicago. Oh well.

Anyway, my group is based out of Denver, working for the Big White Wyrm (whom they initiated a relationship with themselves), and they've been doing some...recruitment for him. This trip to Chicago is not only to add to the dragon's burgeoning roster of top tier spiritual researchers, but also their ticket into the big times with him.

They were sent out to find a research facility within the CZ called the Butterfly House and extract one of the researchers to bring home. Though my players were hesitant, the offer of writing their own check for payment and getting well within the dragon's good graces sweetened the pot. Though initially the most hesitant, my wife (who play the most trigger happy troll I think I've ever seen played), the idea of pretty much getting to do whatever she'd like in town was too tempting to pass up as well.

(Fun side story: we think our new neighbors downstairs brought roaches with them. I wrote this all up about two weeks ago, right before we discovered our lone roach. My wife, who's been going crazy trying to keep this place clean, was not amused when I brought up what lurks within the CZ.)

Anyway. So the group goes to Chicago, does some legwork, and ends up figuring out the location of the Butterfly House, which they then head out to. They get themselves in and they find themselves their researcher, but said researcher doesn't want to leave. See, they do all sorts of bug research here, and they just discovered this nymph...

While the players are trying to convince her what a bad idea it is to be playing around with bugs like that, the building rumbles as buggies show up to do what buggies do best (set to Hostile Abduction, a great little remix from the great Super Metroid remix album; seriously, go listen to that playlist). The players panic and run for their guns (having been relieved of them previously) when the buggies and them lock segmented eyes on each other. Awesome.

There's a little bit of a firefight, and my wife is tossing grenades left right and center. There's one big ol' true form and a bunch of humies that they can't see thanks to smoke from the explosions. As they're continuing on, a grenade lands in-between one of the character's legs...and he crit glitches. Thank you, GM'ing gods. I had been looking for a way to wrap up the night, and they just handed it to me on a silver platter.

With an obvious grin on my face I say, "the grenade goes off, and the structure goes down, down, down." The looks on the player's faces were priceless.

When next they roused - my wife and another player - they had dug themselves out of the wreckage of the building and found themselves minus one researcher. When they found the character that had glitched, they found her critically injured, with ruined legs. Now they have two problems: fixing the character, and finding the researcher.

The player isn't upset - "I get to be a real street sammy now!" was what he said when he realized that he could get a pair of cyber-legs - and they know that they can get the character medical aid as soon as they leave the CZ. However, doing so puts the researcher at risk, and thus the job at risk, as the White Wyrm pretty much spelled out that they can kiss the reward goodbye if she's killed...or worse.

So the current plan is to send the hurt character off with some people making for the Corridor while they go off looking for the researcher. The player of the broken character will make a new character (one of the folks that actually brought them into the CZ) and go along with them.

And later that night, I left on his Facebook, "Well, you're the one that wanted to play with grenades..."

[Machiavelli]

Now they learned two good lessons:

1) don´t f**ck with the GM
2) don´t go to a place where bugs lurk.

[StealthSigma]

Now they learned two good lessons:

1) don´t f**ck with the GM
2) don´t go to a place where bugs lurk.

Three good lessons.

3) Never deal with a dragon.

[Tiralee]

Out of interest, where was the Adept with the double-figure weapon focus? And the Troll with the vibro-polearm and laser/assault cannon?

-You'll never leave Chicago without them:)

-Tir

[ggodo]

Out of interest, where was the Adept with the double-figure weapon focus? And the Troll with the vibro-polearm and laser/assault cannon?

-You'll never leave Chicago without them:)

-Tir

When I was first learning the system I made a starting adept with a force 10 weapon focus. I later saw the limitation on starting availability. Oops.

[longbowrocks]

When I was first learning the system I made a starting adept with a force 10 weapon focus. I later saw the limitation on starting availability. Oops.

You are a bad man. Maybe we should add that to this thread: http://forums.dumpshock.com/index.php?showtopic=27766

I might have been clued in when I noticed that my weapon trinket was more difficult to attain than a satellite nuke. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/eek.gif) (just by a hair though)

[longbowrocks]

Out of interest, where was the Adept with the double-figure weapon focus? And the Troll with the vibro-polearm and laser/assault cannon?

-You'll never leave Chicago without them:)

-Tir

What? These sound like characters that did a bit of finagling post-creation.

[ggodo]

You are a bad man. Maybe we should add that to this thread: http://forums.dumpshock.com/index.php?showtopic=27766

I might have been clued in when I noticed that my weapon trinket was more difficult to attain than a satellite nuke. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/eek.gif) (just by a hair though)

The real trick there was not realizing that availability scales with force. Besides, Satellite nukes weren't in the books back then. Those are WAR!! gear, aren't they?

What? These sound like characters that did a bit of finagling post-creation.

A bit of finagling is an understatement for leaving Chicago alive. Those absurd powerlevels are necessary.

[CanRay]

*Sings in the key of off* "I once shot a 'Runner in Reno, just to watch him die..."

[ggodo]

Note to self, find out if Folsom prison is still around in 2072.

[Doc Chase]

Note to self, find out if Folsom prison is still around in 2072.

Because if they hear that whistle blowin', they'll hang their heads and cry.

[ravensmuse]

Three good lessons.

3) Never deal with a dragon.

...my group is based out of Denver, working for the Big White Wyrm (whom they initiated a relationship with themselves)

They started it (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

No, seriously. I've been meaning to kind of talk about it on here actually - guess I'll take the time to do so now.

The original idea for my campaign was to have my players world hopping from place to place, Cowboy Bebop style. Working for the Big White Worm was supposed to be a one-time thing; something that might come back to bite them later on down the road in some other location, I dunno.

One thing lead to another, and more jobs started rolling in from him. Finally, one of the players just said, "screw it, let's just hire ourselves out permanently." And that's what they've been doing. They started their own "contracting" business, found themselves some abandoned territory, and started building themselves a home. All while working for the wyrm.

So, like I said, they're the ones that started it. I just went along for the ride (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Tyro]

Dragons aren't so bad when you look at the alternatives for employment :-/

[longbowrocks]

Dragons aren't so bad when you look at the alternatives for employment :-/

Then again, your employment opportunities skyrocket when you can put "dragonslayer" on your resume. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ork.gif)

[Tyro]

Then again, your employment opportunities skyrocket when you can put "dragonslayer" on your resume. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ork.gif)

As does your notoriety and the number and value of contracts on your head

[ggodo]

Then again, your employment opportunities skyrocket when you can put "dragonslayer" on your resume. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ork.gif)

It's already his totem, don't make it his goal.

[Tyro]

It's already his totem, don't make it his goal.

I don't know, sounds appropriate to me

[ggodo]

I don't know, sounds appropriate to me

The funny thing is that he really wants to work with S-K because he's a car nut, and loves their German Engineering.

[ravensmuse]

I can get away with this because its my thread.

[Tiralee]

Er, I tossed in those examples as there's no way I'd let new characters go play in Bugtown.
Or Australia.

-Tir

Crushing your player's will is fine, but I like to let them hope a little first.
Insect sprits sort of preclude that.

-T

[longbowrocks]

Er, I tossed in those examples as there's no way I'd let new characters go play in Bugtown.
Or Australia.

-Tir

Crushing your player's will is fine, but I like to let them hope a little first.
Insect sprits sort of preclude that.

-T

Can they survive if they're all powergaming?
ex:
Binky the centaur
FA grenade launcher elf
(properly done) street sammie w/barett 121
Bubba the love troll
and Bear Who Walks Through Walls
all in one party?

[Tyro]

Can they survive if they're all powergaming?
ex:
Binky the centaur
FA grenade launcher elf
(properly done) street sammie w/barett 121
Bubba the love troll
and Bear Who Walks Through Walls
all in one party?

Bear who walks through walls? Is that the adept with all the anti-structure abilities who doesn't bother with doors?

[toturi]

There's a little bit of a firefight, and my wife is tossing grenades left right and center. There's one big ol' true form and a bunch of humies that they can't see thanks to smoke from the explosions. As they're continuing on, a grenade lands in-between one of the character's legs...and he crit glitches. Thank you, GM'ing gods. I had been looking for a way to wrap up the night, and they just handed it to me on a silver platter.

So whose grenade was it? And what roll did he crit glitch?

Was he out of Edge? Was he denied the opportunity to use Edge? Why weren't they under Guard?

[longbowrocks]

Bear who walks through walls? Is that the adept with all the anti-structure abilities who doesn't bother with doors?

Couldn't have put it better myself. Yes.

[ravensmuse]

So whose grenade was it? And what roll did he crit glitch?

Was he out of Edge? Was he denied the opportunity to use Edge? Why weren't they under Guard?

The character wasn't out of Edge, no. I ruled that due to the crit glitch Edge would only lessen the damage, not completely nullify it, and the player took the damage on his own volition. Guard?

Plus it was past our end time (I had work in the morning, and pulling doubleshifts sucks) and the players got a kick out of it, so.